SOUPY FAILS

These weren't "clown portraits" Red
Skelton painted; they were protests
against the plight of hobos. 

 There was a time when art was used to bring attention to social issues. I say "was" because as times change, art itself has become vandalized for the same purpose. Not only is this incredibly lazy -- see, it takes time and talent to create art -- but it doesn't make sense. 

You're throwing paint at a beloved Degas sculpture and pouring oil on a Gustav Klint painting to protest... climate change? I had no idea these works of art were emitting greenhouse gases. We should start bulldozing the Metropolitain Museum of Art, stat!

Just to make their acts seem less criminal, these blockheads don't refer to these acts as vandalism, as everyone else would, but ecotage. It's how the originators referred to their original acts of "protests" instead of what they were really doing, burning down buildings. Maybe ecotage sounded less felonious than "arson"

Over the weekend, another work of art was targeted by a couple of doofuses (doofi?) at the Louvre. And, in the same way news organizations call the October 7 Hamas terrorists "militants", these vandals are referred to as "activists". 

On the other hand, it's nice to know that the
French can be stupid, too.

Their "statement" consisted of splashing soup on the Mona Lisa in order to protest hunger -- or, as they call it these days, "food insecurity", which actually sounds like people are worried if their grilled cheese sandwich is hip enough for the room.

Splattering the Mona Lisa with soup makes as little sense as the other acts of vandalism. First, they didn't seem to be aware that the damn thing is behind bullet-proof glass, so all the Louvre officials need is Windex and paper towels. Although I find vinegar mixed with a little water does the trick without leaving streaks.

If you're going to vandalize art, try
something by Leroy Neiman next time.

Second, if they're so upset about food not being available for hungry insecure
people, why did they waste it on a photo-op? Certainly, some Parisian in need might have appreciated it with a baguette. 

Third, they're never going to win people over with these stunts. If you don't believe me, nowhere in Psychology Today's "7 Tips for Better Persuasion" is the tip "Destroy art."

Fourth, their manifesto complains about "foreign products that do not meet minimum ecological and social standards" (whose standards?), adding, "Agriculture is responsible for 21% of national greenhouse gas emissions an contributes greatly to the deterioration of our biodiversity and the impoverishment of soils, due to the massive use of inputs".

So the folks who complain about not enough food being available are bitching about farmers who provide the food? Shoot me now. No, pour soup on me instead. It makes for a better photo-op.

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